1227 
|7 F6 

V 1 



DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Albert B. Fall, Secretary 



United States Geological Survey 

George Otis Smith, Director 

Water-supply Paper 487 



THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD 
OF JUNE 3-5, 1921 

BY 

ROBERT FOLLANSBEE 

AND 

EDWARD E. JONES 




WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OPFIOl 

. 1922 



lfatfgn# 



DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Albert B. Fall, Secretary 



United States Geological Survey 

George Otis Smith, Director 



Water-Supply Paper 487 



THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD 
OF JUNE 3-5, 1921 



ROBERT FOLLANSBEE 

AND 

EDWARD E. JONES 




WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 

1922 






LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 


. d 


JUN9 1922 


SION 



CONTENTS. 






Introduction- 



ILLUSTKATIONS. 



Page. 



Acknowledgments 6 

Summary of flood losses 6 

Progress of flood crest through Arkansas Valley 8 

Topography of Arkansas basin 9 

Cause of flood 11 

Principal areas of intense rainfall 15 

Effect of reservoirs on the flood 10 

Flood flows 19 

Method of determination 19 

The flood between Canon City and Pueblo 23 

The flood at Pueblo 23 

General features 23 

Arrival of tributary flood crests 25 

Maximum discharge 26 

Total discharge 27 

The flood below Pueblo 30 

General features 30 

Tributary streams 31 

Fountain Creek :;j 

St. Charles River 33 

Chico Creek 34 

Previous floods 35 

Flood of Indian legend 35 

Floods of authentic record 36 

Maximum discharges per square mile previously recorded 40 

Index 43 



Page. 
Plate I. Map of Arkansas Valley between Canon City and Pueblo. Colo_ 6 

II. .4, Effect of flood in railroad yards; B, Overturned baggage car 

from Denver & Rio Grande train 8 

III. A, View looking upstream toward site of Schaeffer dam ; B, 

Beaver Creek 1 mile above mouth 18 

IV. A, Eightmile Creek, showing typical section used in determin- 

ing maximum discharge ; B. Skaguay reservoir, with dam 

and spillway 19 

V. A, Silt 18 inches deep deposited in front of Union Depot ; B, 
Overturned tracks on Denver & Rio Grande Railroad west 

of Pueblo 24 

VI. A, High-water mark on Electric Building; B, Union Depot on 

the morning of June 4, 1921 25 

Figtjbjs 1. Hydrograph of Arkansas River at Pueblo, showing stage of river 

from June 2 to June 5, 1921 28 

3 



THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 



By Robert Follansbee and Edward E. Jones. 



INTRODUCTION. 

Between June 2 and June 5, 1921, heavy rains of an intensity to 
justify the term " cloud-bursts " in the foothill region of the Arkansas 
Valley in Colorado caused the severest flood in the valley since its 
settlement. Flood conditions prevailed during the entire period, but 
there were three distinct floods in the upper valley. The first flood 
was caused by heavy rain on Dry Creek just above Pueblo on the 
night of June 2; the second was the main flood, which occurred dur- 
ing the night of June 3 ; and the third was that due to the breaking of 
the Schaeffer reservoir, on Beaver Creek, on the morning of June 5. 
The area considered in this report is shown in Plate I. 

The flood was remarkable for the very small area covered by the 
rainfall that was its chief cause, and for the swift rise of the river 
to an unprecedented stage and its almost equally rapid fall. The 
swift rise and fall indicated very great flood discharges of the 
tributary streams, which drain a mountainous country of steep slopes. 
The total discharge of the main flood was less than 90,000 acre-feet. 

Immediately after the flood the United States Geological Survey 
undertook an investigation of its causes and results, and the field 
work was begun as soon as conditions permitted. An examination 
was made of all the streams within the area affected by the flood to 
procure data on maximum run-off in the foothill region and the 
effect of this tributary run-off upon the main flood. The maximum 
discharge of each stream was determined from the slope shown by 
well-defined high -water marks and from the average of several cross 
sections. As there are no regular Weather Bureau stations in the 
area, especial care was taken to obtain from local residents as reliable 
statements as possible regarding rainfall and time of flood flows of 
each stream. From the field data ana from information obtained 
from various reliable sources it has been possible to show the cause 
of the flood and the cause of its rapid rise and fall at Pueblo. In 

5 



6 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 

addition every effort has been made to obtain the best possible data 
for determining the maximum and total discharge of the Arkansas at 
Pueblo. Although no field work was done below the mouth of St. 
Charles River, available data regarding the flood in that part of the 
Arkansas Valley have been compiled and are presented in this report. 
The field work, which was begun July 6, was in charge of Edward 
E. Jones, assisted by Kendall K. Hoyt. The computations connected 
with the field work were made by Mr. Jones, assisted by P. V. Hodges. 
The office studies were made and the report was prepared by Robert 
Follansbee, assisted by P. V. Hodges, J. B. Spiegel, and Mrs. Esther 
D. Rae. 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 

Acknowledgments are due to the engineering department of the 
Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad Co., especially Mr. Arthur 
O. Ridgway, assistant chief engineer, and Mr. C. M. Lightburn, for 
placing at the disposal of the Geological Survey data compiled by 
the railroad in an extensive survey made to determine flood losses; 
to Mr. R. G. Hosea, deputy State engineer, who furnished data re- 
garding the flood at Pueblo and other valuable information relative 
to the flow of the Arkansas and several tributary streams; to Mr. 
H. D. Amsley, State hydrographer, for data on the flood at Pueblo 
and at other points in the Arkansas Valley; to Mr. J. M. Sherier, 
meteorologist of the Weather Bureau at Denver, for data and valu- 
able suggestions ; to Mr. F. R. Johnson, of the United States Forest 
Service, for data on rainfall ; to Mr. J. L. Savage, designing engineer, 
United States Reclamation Service, for data on flood losses in Ar- 
kansas Valley ; and to many local residents for information. 

SUMMARY OF FLOOD LOSSES. 

The entire Arkansas Valley from Florence, 30 miles west of Pueblo, 
to the State line, was severely affected, and the loss of life and prop- 
erty was heavy. The greatest damage was done in Pueblo, the chief 
city in the valley. Below Pueblo the loss was chiefly agricultural, 
more than 57,000 acres being inundated, of which 4,700 acres was de- 
stroyed for agriculture. The headworks of practically every irriga- 
tion system in the valley were damaged or destroyed. The valleys of 
the upper tributaries, notably St. Charles River and Fountain, Chico, 
and Beaver creeks, were also flooded. By the time the flood reached 
the Kansas line its crest height had so flattened out that its progress 
through Kansas caused no damage comparable with that in Colorado. 

The exact extent of losses to life and property will never be known. 
The most complete estimate of property losses was one prepared for 
the board of United States Reclamation Service engineers who made 



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S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 




MAP OF ARKANSAS VALLEY BETWEEN CANON CITY AND PUEBLO, COLORADO 



SUMMARY OF FLOOD LOSSES. 7 

an examination of the river and proposed plans for prevention 
against future floods. This estimate 1 is given below. 

Property losses it* Arkansas River flood of -June, W2t. 

Federal, State, and county property $900,000 

Municipal property 800. 000 

Real estate (city and town) 3,420.000 

Personal property (city and town) 3,575,000 

Farms 3, 675. 000 

Irrigation works 1, 275, 000 

Railroads 4, 275, 000 

Public utilities 500,000 

Other property 250,000 

19, 080, 000 

A report to the Pueblo city ccuncil stated that 510 dwellings were 
washed away, 98 buildings wrecked, and 01 buildings washed from 
their foundations. 

The loss of life in Pueblo w T as heavy, owing to the swift rise of the 
river and the unwillingness of many people to heed the flood warn- 
ings. The official list places the number of bodies recovered at 78, 
but many bodies that were washed downstream were not recovered. 

All communication with the outside world was cut off, as all tele- 
graph and telephone wires were down. The day after the flood 
relief measures were started by the city, assisted by local members 
of the National Guard and the American Legion. Near-by cities 
sent relief to the flood sufferers as soon as possible, but owing to 
the impassable condition of the railroads and highways progress 
was slow. Motor trucks loaded with food, clothing, and medical 
supplies headed by Army and State highw T ay officers started from 
Denver and Colorado Springs on the 4th and reached Pueblo on the 
afternoon of the 5th. 

The heaviest loss was incurred by the railroad companies, as the 
flooded area included nearly all the extensive terminals of the roads 
that enter Pueblo (PI. II, A). So great w T as the damage to railroad 
property not only in Pueblo but in the surrounding territory that 
not a relief train could enter Pueblo for two days. Of the six 
railroad bridges over Arkansas River and three over Fountain 
Creek, only one, the Santa Fe bridge to the Union Depot, escaped. 
All the others lost one or more spans or large portions of approaches. 
The Missouri Pacific yard and engine terminal was cut off by a new^ 
channel and w T as left on an island without rail connection. A Denver 
& Rio Grande train and a Missouri Pacific train were caught in the 

1 Munn, James, and Savage, J. L., The flood of June, 1921, in the Arkansas River, at 
Pueblo, Colo. : Am. Soc. Civil Eng. ProC, vol. 47, No. 7. September, 1921. 



8 



THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3- 



1921. 



flood while trying to reach higher ground, cars were overturned, and 
several lives were lost (PI. II, B). The 2,000 cars in the yards 
during the flood suffered enormous damage ; many were floated away 
and overturned or crushed by the impact or pressure of debris. 
Some cars were floated great distances and were never recovered. 2 
The total property loss in the city was estimated at $10,000,000. 



PROGRESS OF FLOOD CREST THROUGH ARKANSAS 

VALLEY. 

The streams that enter Arkansas River between Canon City and 
the mouth of Chico Creek, 16 miles below Pueblo, were the source 
of the flood, and in that section of the river the flood crest increased 
rapidly as it proceeded downstream. Below the mouth of Chico 
Creek the river received practically no additional flood discharges. 

The approximate time of the flood crest at several points, as ob- 
tained from local observers, and the maximum discharge at points 
where it was measured are given in the following table. As the 
crest flattened out, it became less sharply defined, and the exact time 
of its arrival at different points was more difficult to determine. 

Progress of flood crest through Arkansas Valley. 



Distance 

Point of observation. between 

points. a 


Approximate time of crest. 


Rate of 
progress. 


Crest 
flow. 


Duration 
of crest 
flow. 




Miles'. 




Miles per 

hour. 


Sec.-ft. 
3,740 
9,000 

103,000 






8 
35 

52 
10 
13 

28 
23 

7 
30 


8.30 p.m. June 3 


16.0 
10.0 

5.5 
5.0 
3.7 

3.5 
4.2 
2.1 
2.3 








6 min 






utes. 














200,000 








utes. 






170,000 










Holly 




120,000 











a Measured along river. 

The table shows that the rate of progress of the flood crest de- 
creased as it traveled down the river. Above Pueblo the decrease 
Avas due chiefly to the decreased slope of the river, but this could not 
have had much effect in the lower part of the valley, as the mean 
slope decreases only from 8.3 feet to the mile between Pueblo and 
La Junta to 7.5 feet to the mile between La Junta and the State line. 
Below La Junta the chief factor in retarding the progress of the 

2 Data on railroad losses taken from Railway Age, June 17, 1921. 



u 


s. 


GEOLOGICAL 


SURVEY WATER- 


SUPPLY 


PAPER 


487 PLATE II 


I 


p 


£ 






MPS 

^^ /Aim 












f%* 







A. EFFECT OF FLOOD IN RAILROAD YARDS. 




B. OVERTURNED BAGGAGE CAR FROM DENVER & RIO GRANDE TRAIN. 



TOPOGRAPHY OF ARKANSAS BASIN. 9 

flood was the flattening out of the crest due to the natural storage 
afforded by the area inundated. 

Above La Junta the effect of channel storage in flattening the crest 
was obscured by the flood flows from the tributary streams, which in- 
creased the maximum discharge greatly. Below La Junta the flow 
from tributaries was small and the storage effect more marked, as 
shown by the decrease in maximum discharge from 200,000 second- 
feet at La Junta to 170,000 second- feet at the Amity canal, at a dis- 
tance of 51 miles, and to 120,000 second-feet at Holly, at an additional 
distance of 37 miles. 

The flattening of the flood* crest was compensated by its greater 
duration. At Pueblo it lasted 6 minutes; at La Junta, 45 minutes; 
and at Amity canal, 3^ hours. The duration of the crest at Holly is 
not known, but it must have been several hours. 

TOPOGRAPHY OF ARKANSAS BASIN. 

The part of the Arkansas drainage basin lying in Colorado is 
roughly rectangular and occupies the southeastern quarter of the 
State. Its northwest corner reaches the heart of the Rocky Moun- 
tains near Leadville, a little west of the center of the State. Arkan- 
sas River is formed by the junction of East Fork and Tennessee 
Fork, each of which rises in the Continental Divide at an elevation 
of 11,000 feet or more. From the junction of the two forks, 3 miles 
west of Leadville, the river flows southeastward for 84 miles to a 
point near Cotopaxi, then turns and follows an easterly course for 
245 miles to the State line. In the upper part of its course it flows 
through mountainous country in a narrow valley formed by parallel 
mountain ranges. Between Cotopaxi and Canon City it cuts through 
the front range of mountains, and a few miles below Canon City it 
enters the upper end of the open valley. This valley gradually 
widens until it merges into the Great Plains a few miles west of 
Pueblo. 

The drainage basin east of the mountains lies in the western por- 
tion of the Great Plains, which extend from the foot of the Rocky 
Mountains to the Mississippi Valley. These plains present wide 
areas of smooth surface traversed by the broad, shallow valley of 
Arkansas River and more or less deeply cut by the narrower valleys 
of lateral streams. Smooth surfaces and eastward-sloping plains 
are the characteristic features, especially of the uplands, but in parts 
of the region there are buttes, extended escarpments, and canyons of 
considerable depth. 3 One of these buttes is Baculite Mesa, northeast 
of Pueblo, which rises 400 feet from the plain. 



3 Darton, N. H., Geology and underground waters of Arkansas Valley, Colo. 
Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 52, p. 8, 1906. 



10 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-6, 1921. 

Of the 28,000 square miles drained by Arkansas River in Colorado 
the upper 3,840 square miles is mountainous, with extremely rugged 
topography. Within this upper area there are many perennial tribu- 
taries, but east of the mountains the tributaries are relatively small 
except in time of spring high water from melting snow or after 
heavy rains. 

The area covered by the rainfall of June 2-5, 1921, lies chiefly be- 
tween Canon City and Pueblo. It is bounded on the north by the 
foothills of the Pikes Peak uplift and on the south by the Wet Moun- 
tains and their extension, Greenhorn Mountain. The following de- 
scription of the topography is quoted from Gilbert : 4 

Twenty miles south of Colorado Springs the line of foothills turns sharply 
westward for 20 miles and then, near Canon City, swings quickly to the south 
and southeast, holding the latter course for 40 miles. Within this flexure is a 
triangular tongue of the plains country half surrounded by mountain ranges. 

For half its course between Canon City and Pueblo the Arkansas is closely 
hemmed in by rock bluffs 200 feet high, with cliffs of limestone at the top. Else- 
where its immediate valley is more open, usually with a sharp ascent on one 
side to a gravelly mesa and a long, gradual slope on the other. Fart lies- back 
the ascent is broken by terraces of gravel or sand or by tracts of clayey bad- 
lands and here and there by rocky cliffs and mesas. 

Within this area there are many tributaries that rise in the moun- 
tains that bound the drainage basin. The tributaries from the north 
are Oil, Sixmile, Eightmile, Brush Hollow, Beaver, Turkey, and 
Dry creeks, and those from the south are Chandler, Oak, Coal, Hard- 
scrabble, Red, Eush, Pecks, and Rock creeks. 

Between the steep slopes of the Wet Mountains and the river a 
broad area known generally as Boggs Flat slopes toward the river. 
Across this area the tributary streams heading in the mountains have 
cut well-defined channels. In addition to these streams a number 
of arroyos or dry channels, of which Ritchie Gulch, Osteen and 
Cameron arroyos, Boggs and Blue Ribbon creeks are the chief, rise 
in the upland area and carry water during the heavy rains to which 
this area is subject. 

The following table w r as compiled chiefly from topographic maps : 

4 Gilbert, G. K., Underground water of the Arkansas Valley in eastern Colorado: IL S. 
Geol. Survey Seventeenth Ann. Rept., pt. 2, p. 558, 1896. 



CAUSE OF FLOOD. 



11 



Elevations and distances along Arkansas River from Canon Citij to Colorado- 
Kansas line. 



Eleva- 
tion 


Distance. 


Descent between 
points. 










above 
sea level. 


From 
Canon 
City. 


Point to 
point. 


Total. 


Per mije.. 


Feet. 


Miles. 


Miles. 


Feet. 


Feet. 


5,320 










5,245 


3.0 


3.0 


75 


25 


5,125 


9.8 


6.8 


120 


18 


5,020 


14.5 


4.7 


105 


22 


4,970 


18.0 


3.5 


50 


14 


4,900 


23.2 


5.2 


70 


13 


4,775 


32.0 


8.8 


125 


14 


4,670 


43.0 


11.0 


105 


10 


4,560 


51.8 


8.8 


110 


12 


4,430 


67.1 


15.3 


130 


8 


4,280 


89.8 


22.7 


150 


7 


4,150 


104.8 


15.0 


130 


9 


4,050 


117.6 


12.8 


100 


8 


3,930 


133.1 


15.5 


120 


8 


3,850 


142.5 


9.4 


80 


9 


3,760 


156.3 


13.8 


90 


7 


3,600 


176.3 


20.0 


160 


8 


3,550 


185.0 


8.7 


50 


6 


3,480 


194.8 


9.8 


70 


7 


3,350 


211.4 


16.6 


130 


8 



Canon City 

Oil Creek 

Eightmile Creek 

Hardscrabble Creek 

Beaver Creek 

Red Creek 

Pecks Creek 

Union Avenue Bridge, Pueblo.. 

St. Charles River 

Huerfano River 

Apishapa River 

Bridge north of Rocky Ford 

La Junta 

Adobe Creek 

Purgatoire River 

Caddoa 

Lamar 

Big Sandy Creek 

Bridge north of Granada 

Colorado-Kansas line 



CAUSE OF FLOOD. 

The cause of the flood was a series of cloud-bursts "' resulting from 
heavy rain-bearing clouds striking against the mountains and being 
deflected upward. 

The daily w T eather maps for the first week in June show that an 
area of high pressure (exceeding 30.5 inches) appeared over the 



5 The phenomena called " cloud-bursts " are very intense rainfalls of short duration 
over small areas that are sharply defined. Cloud-bursts are common along the eastern 
slope of the Rocky Mountains wherever canyons have cut deeply into the mountain 
masses. Each of these canyons acts like a chimney flue in creating a strong upward 
draft for the warm and relatively moist air from the plains, which passes up the canyon 
and readies an altitude where the temperature becomes low enough to condense the 
moisture. The upward draft is sufficiently strong to support the moisture for some 
time after condensation begins, but finally the weight of moisture in the air becomes 
too great to be longer sustained and it is precipitated in torrents. 

Cloud-bursts of less violence also occur on the plains. The air over a small area be- 
comes abnormally heated, and the convectional currents force the air upward. 

Coincident with a cloud-burst Is the other phenomenon of a " wall of water " rushing 
down the stream. Where the soil is clayey and has been baked hard by the sun, the 
conditions are ideal for rapid run-off after a heavy rain. The following explanation of 
the " wall of water " is taken from Engineering and Contracting for June 8, 1921 : 

" When rain begins to fall more rapidly than the soil can absorb it, the first thin 
sheet of water that flows down the watercourses moves slowly, because the friction of 
the water is proportionately greater the shallower the stream. The friction acts like a 
dam, holding the stream back. Hence it follows that the water tends to bank up, so that 
the rain that fell first is overtaken by rain that fell many minutes later. The deeper 
the stream the faster it flows, for the frictional resistance is then proportionately less. 
Consequently the time comes when the flood moves rapidly down the watercourse, its 
front crest often being several feet deep and looking like a huge sea wave about to 
break on a shore." 



i2 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 

province of Alberta on June 1. By the 2d it had displaced a low- 
pressure area over the upper Missouri Valley, and on the 3d it was 
over Manitoba and the northern part of North Dakota. Between 
the 3d and 4th the movement was very slow, and it advanced only as 
far as northeastern Minnesota. By June 5 the area had reached a 
point over the Great Lakes. During this period an area of low pres- 
sure (29.7 inches) had developed over western Arizona and remained 
over the southern Rocky Mountain plateau for several days. The 
difference in pressure between the " high " and " low " areas caused 
air currents to travel from the " high " to the " low " in an endeavor 
to equalize the pressure. The movement from the " high " area was 
outward and downward in a general clockwise direction toward the 
" low " area. 

The relative positions of the areas of high and low pressure caused 
the storm to come primarily from the east or northeast. All along 
the front range in Colorado and New Mexico heavy rains occurred 
when the clouds were forced upward by reaching the mountains, but 
nowhere else was the rainfall as heavy as in the upper Arkansas 
Valley. 

The general line of the front range and foothills bears to the south- 
east from the Wyoming boundary to Pikes Peak, a semidetached 
mountain mass rising abruptly from the plains. South of Pikes Peak 
the front range and line of foothills turn sharply Avestward for 20 
miles and then near Canon City swing quickly to the south and south- 
east and keep that course for 20 miles. This reentrant angle in the 
general line of the front range had a marked influence on the storm, 
causing it to concentrate at that point. From the statements of ob- 
servers it is evident that the storm was deflected by Pikes Peak and 
came into the smaller area of heavy precipitation (pp. 15-16) from 
the north. Owing to the funnel shape of the valley opening upon the 
plains, air rushed into it both from the northeast and from the south- 
east around the end of Greenhorn Mountain. The rushing together 
gave the combined air currents a more or less circular movement that 
caused them to swing around to the north and northwest, w T here they 
met the storm coming down from the north. This circular motion 
caused the clouds to impinge against the side of the mountains so 
violently that they rose quickly and precipitated their moisture with 
great rapidity. Thunderstorms and hail, which occurred at the be- 
ginning of the rain, indicated the strong convective character of the 
storm. 

The Weather Bureau received reports of precipitation at a number 
of points in this general region, which are summarized in the follow- 
ing table: 



CAUSE OF FLOOD. 



13 



Ramfall in upper Arkansas Valley, June 2—6, 1921, in inches. 

[Except as noted all records are for 24 hours ending at 8 a. m. The records at Florence were taken by the 

United Oil Co.] 



Station. 


Eleva- 
tion 
above 
sea level. 


June 2. 


June 3. 


June 4. 


June 5. 


June 6 


Total. 


Precipi 
tation 
in 48 
hours 
ending 
after- 
noon of 
June 4. 




Feet. 
5, 343 
5,187 
4,685 
6,098 

10, 268 
8,850 

10,100 
7,200 
9,220 
6,010 
4,300 
4,052 


""T94* 
.14 


0.30 
.99 

1.64 

2.22 
.65 

2.53 
.03 

""."98' 


2.35 
3.31 
1.45 
1.87 
3.68 
2.61 
2.08 
2.90 
.89 
1.06 
.90 
.80 


0.75 
2.47 
1.12 

.55 
1.40 
1.43 
1.55 

.82 

"".*56" 
.75 

.81 


0.40 
.13 
.09 
.40 
.18 
.48 
.37 
.05 
.20 
.04 
.19 
.08 


3.80 
6.90 
6.24 
5.18 
5.91 
7.05 
4.03 
3.83 
2.07 
1.66 
2.09 
1.69 


2.65 




4.11 


Pueblo a 


3.09 




4.09 




4.33 


Fremont experiment station 


5.14 
2.11 




2.90 




1.87 




1.06 




.25 




.90 




.80 













a Records represent rainfall for 2 1 hours ending at midnight. 
b Records represent rainfall for 24 hours ending at 6 p. m. 
c Records represent rainfall for 24 hours ending at 4 p. m. 

No Weather Bureau stations are maintained in the region of heavy 
rainfall, which, in the Arkansas River basin, extended from a point 
north of Colorado Springs on the north to the Wet Mountains on 
the south, and from Canon City on the west to a point just west and 
north of Pueblo on the east. Within this region in small areas 
the rainfall was intense. The precipitation in these areas can only 
be roughly estimated from statements of local residents, many of 
whom were interviewed for that purpose. The subjoined table and 
the brief statements that follow it summarize most of the information 
obtained. 

Summarized statements of local resident* regarding rainfall on June 3, 1921. 



Locality. 


Statement regarding amount. 


Duration. 


Began. 


Ended. 


NORTH OF ARKANSAS RIVER. 

Dry Creek near mouth 




4 p. in 

7.30 p.m.. 

Night of 
June 3-4. 
3p.m 




Dry Creek in sec. 26, T. 20 N., 

R.65 W. 
Sec. 27, T. 20 S., R. 65 W., just west 

ofPuebk. 
Teller reservoir on Turkev Creek 






12 inches (measured in concrete 
box). 


Morning of June 4 


Skaguay reservoir on West Beaver 


7.5 inches (measured in bucket 

on morning of June 5). 
7 inches (measured in standard 

rain gage); hardest at 9 p. m. 


Creek. 


3p.m 

7p.m 

8 p. m 

3p.m 

5 p. m 




Penrose 


Morning of June 4. 
Midnight. 

11 p. m. 


Brush Hollow Creek in sec. 13. T. 19 

S.,R.69W. 
Eightmile Creek 5 miles above 

mouth. 
Eightmile Creek in sec. 15, T. 19 S., 

R. 69 W. 
Oil Creek in sec. 35. T. 18 S., R. 70 W . 




10 inches (hardest about 3.15 p. m.). 
No cloud-burst; ordinary hard rain. 



14 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 

Summarized statements of local residents, etc. — Continued. 



Locality. 


Statement regarding amount. 


Duration. 


Began. 


Ended. 


SOUTH OF ARKANSAS RIVER. 

Chandler Creek half a mile west of 
Florence. 

Hardscrabble Creek on divide 

southeast of Florence. 
Rush Creek in sec. 9, T. 21 S., R. 

67 W. 
Rush Creek In sec. 22, T. 20 S., 


9 inches (measured in bucket): did 
not extend up Chandler Creek 
3 miles. 

4 inches of water ran over prairie. . 

Cloud-burst far 30 minutes. Hard- 
est rain 2 miles south. 

Tremendous rain ; water ran every- 
where. 


Hardest at 
6.30 p.m. 

3p. m 

3p.m 


11 p. m. 

Midnight. 

6.30 p.m. 

Midnight . 

Morning of Ju] 
4 a.m. June 4. 




R. 67 W. 
Pecks Creek 8 miles above month.. . 


2.30 p.m.. 

4p.m 

3p.m 

(4 p.m 

\9 p. m 

3-4 p.m... 

5p. m 

4 p. m 

3 p. ni 

6p.m 




R.67W. 

Cameron and Osteen arroyoB in sec. 

30, T.20S.,R.HK W. 
Head of Rock Creek in sec. 34, T. 21 


Five periods of very hard rain 




8., R.67 W. 
Between Rock and Soda creeks, 

sec. 29, T. 21 S., It. 66 W. 
Boggs Flat, about sec. 35, T. 21 S., 

R766 W. 
Blue Ribbon Creek in sec. 32, T. 20 


Horse drowned in open field 

5 inches in 30 minutes: 6 inches of 
water ran over prairie. 


te t. 


S., R.65 W. 
Blue Ribbon Creek in sec. 2, T. 21 S., 

R.65W. 
Beulah, in sec. 3, T. 23 S., R. 68 W. . 


10 inches (hardest at 10 p. m) 











Note.— Except where method of measuring rainfall is given above, the amounts can be considered only 
roughly approximate, as the observers had no means of making accurate measurements. 

Several ranchers on Bloggs Flat stated that the precipitation dur- 
ing the afternoon and night of June 3 was 14 inches. A hard- 
surfaced road in that section was washed out to a depth of 7 feet. 

The area drained by Dry Creek, unlike those of the other tribu- 
tary streams, had its severest rain on June 2. Mr. J. F. Wing, who 
lives in sec. 26, T. 20 S., R. 65 W., stated that the heaviest rain 
began about 2 p. m. June 2 and continued until midnight or later. 
At 11 p. m. the bridge over Twenty- fourth Street in Pueblo was 
washed out. On June 3 it was misty or rainy all clay, and at 7.30 
p. m. a very hard rain began, which became a cloud-burst at 10 p. m. 

The residents living south of Arkansas River agreed that the 
storm came from the northeast, then worked around north, and 
finally to the northwest. The most complete statements are sum- 
marized below. 

Mr. Fred Rosencrantz. who lives in sees. 32 and 33. T. 20 S., R. 65 
W., said that the storm appeared to come from the northeast and 
was met by another storm which came from Old Baldy (local name 
for Greenhorn Mountain) to the southwest. At that time the water 
in the Arkansas appeared to be flowing both up and down stream, the 
up-river current being caused by the inflow from Blue Ribbon Creek 
and other arroyos from the south. 



PRINCIPAL AREAS OP INTENSE RAINFALL. 15 

Mr. C. F. Burke, manager of the Blue Ribbon ranch, in sees. 2 
and 3, T. 21 S., R. 65 W., stated that the storm appeared to come 
from the northeast and was met by a storm from the southwest. 

Mr. J. H. Farris, in sec. 34, T. 21 S., R. 67 W., stated that he 
first noticed storm clouds in the northeast. The storm appeared to 
work to the west on the north side of the river, then south and 
southeast, and when it reached his ranch was coming from the north- 
west. 

Mr. E. C. Higgins, who lives at the crossing of the Penrose and 
Canon City road over Eightmile Creek, 6 miles above its mouth, 
gave the most complete account of the storm. He said the sky had 
been very cloudy the entire morning of June 3. From the mesa 
above his house he could see for many miles along the east face of 
the Wet Mountain range, which lies south of Arkansas River. A 
dense bank of black clouds lay along the top and sides of the range 
during the morning, and about 1 p. m. it dropped down from the 
mountains and seemed to push out along the mesa top. A similar 
bank of clouds had hung in the hills to the north, in the direction 
of Cripple Creek. These clouds gradually dropped lower, and by 
1 p. m. it started to rain in the hills. Between 2.30 and 3 p. m. it 
began to rain at the Higgins ranch, and in a few minutes the rain 
was pouring down in sheets so continuous that it Avas impossible to 
see across the highway lane in front of the house. 

Mr. Sim Wells, superintendent of the Colorado Fuel & Iron Co.'s 
ditch, who lives near the mouth of Rock Creek, stated that at the 
point where the creek leaves the high mesa lands the water came 
over the edge of the mesa in great sheets for a distance of half a 
mile on each side. 

The rain began in the foothills north of the narrow mountain valley 
about 1 p. m. By 3 p. m. it had spread over the upper and middle 
parts of the valley, and between 5 and 7 p. m. it reached the lower 
end near Pueblo. On Eightmile. Rush, and Rock creeks the hardest 
rain occurred between 3 and 4 p. m. : near Pueblo it did not occur until 
10 or 11 p. m. The rain continued with intermissions until after 
midnight. 

PRINCIPAL AREAS OF INTENSE RAINFALL. 

The Weather Bureau records (p. 13) indicate that for the 48 hours 
ending on the afternoon of June 4 the rainfall in the drainage basin 
between Canon City and Pueblo w T as from 3 to 5 inches and that it was 
heaviest in the northern part of this area, near Pikes Peak. Within 
this general region there were smaller areas where the rainfall was 
very intense but of short duration. 



16 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 

The statements of local residents and the measured maximum dis- 
charges of the tributary streams indicate two principal areas of 
intense rainfall. (See PI. I.) The larger area, which is roughly ellip- 
tical, extends from the northern boundary of Pueblo County to the 
top of the Wet Mountains near Beulah, a distance of 30 miles, and 
from a point a short distance above the mouth of Rush Creek nearly 
to Pueblo, a distance of 15 miles. The smaller area covers the south 
slope of the Pikes Peak uplift, which forms the northern part of 
the mountain valley, and extends from a point above Skaguay reser- 
voir to a point 3 or 4 miles south of the river, a distance of 25 miles, 
and from Oil Creek to Heaver Creek, a distance of 11 miles. The two 
areas cover 550 square miles. 

EFFECT OF RESERVOIRS ON THE FLOOD. 

Considerable misinformation relative to the effect of reservoirs 
upon the flood was disseminated by the general and technical press 
at the time of its occurrence. There are three reservoirs of con- 
siderable size within the areas of intense rainfall, and none of these 
contributed to the main flood of June 3. The Schaeffer reservoir, 
on Beaver Creek, failed on June 5, causing the flood of that date, 
which was very severe in the valley immediately below the mouth of 
Beaver Creek but flattened out farther downstream. The other two 
reservoirs, the Skaguay reservoir, on Beaver Creek, and the Teller 
reservoir, on Turkey Creek, safely withstood the flood. At the time 
of the main flood the three reservoirs helped in a slight degree to 
reduce its magnitude by holding back a portion of the run-off above 
them. 

The Schaeffer reservoir, which had a capacity of 3,190 acre-feet, 
was formed by an earth dam across Beaver Creek in sec. 9, T. 18 S., 
R. 08 W. The dam had a maximum height of 100 feet above the 
bottom of the outlet and a length on the crest of 1,100 feet. Its 
average height was about 90 feet for the middle 500 feet of its 
length. The width on the crest was 15 feet, the outside slope 2 to 1, 
and the inside slope 3 to 1. A freeboard of 10 feet was provided. 
A concrete cut-off wall was provided in the middle portion of the 
dam, and a timber cut-off wall for the remainder. The inlet was a 
concrete tunnel 4 feet wide and 5 feet high, constructed on bedrock. 
The dam was built to a -height of 20 to 30 feet by the hydraulic- 
fill method when it was observed that the material deposited in the 
center of the dam retained water and did not consolidate, being more 
nearly liquid than solid. The liquid material was replaced by dry 
earth, and the dam was finished by depositing the earth by wagons, 
sprinkling, and rolling in thin layers. The inner slope was rip- 
rapped to the top. A spillway 100 feet wide was provided beyond 



EFFECT OF KESERVOIKS ON THE FLOOD. 17 

the east end. of the dam, and the discharge was led away from the 
toe of the embankment by a canal constructed for that purpose. 6 

Mr. C. E. White, superintendent of the water division of the 
Beaver Park Irrigation Co., gave the following account of the fail- 
ure of the reservoir (see PL III, A) : 

The storm of June 3 began at the reservoir about 7 p. m. At that time the 
water in the reservoir stood 7 feet below the spillway level. By 4.30 a. m. 
June 4 the run-off above the reservoir filled the reservoir and the water began 
to run over the spillway. By 7.30 a. m. the spillway was discharging 1,500 
second-feet, and in addition the large outlet gate was opened halfway. At 5.30 
p. m. the water flowing over the spillway had fallen 9 inches, and it was be- 
lieved the flood had been successfully passed. Two hours later, at 7.30 p. m. 
June 4, the water flowing over the spillway began to rise again and continued 
to rise at the rate of 3 inches an hour. At this time the large outlet gate was 
opened wide, as was also a by-pass gate having a capacity of 88 second-feet. 
The water dropped slightly about 9.30 a. m. June 5. and shortly afterward the 
water appeared to give a surge and overtopped the dam for about 75 feet 
along its middle section. At this time the water flowing over the spillway 
was 4£ feet deep. The dam failed soon afterward, being almost entirely 
washed out, and in 30 minutes' time the reservoir was empty. 

By the failure of the Schaeffer dam about 3,600 acre- feet of water 
was released into Beaver Creek within 30 minutes. This resulted in 
a veritable wall of water rushing down Beaver Creek and causing a 
flood in Arkansas Kiver. The sudden rush of water down the Ar- 
kansas swept all before it for several miles, or until the natural stor- 
age of the river channel reduced the peak. The greatest damage was 
caused near Swallows, where several buildings and all freight cars 
standing on side tracks were washed away. The following table 
shows the time the flood was observed at several points between the 
reservoir and Pueblo : 

Observed time of flood of June 5, 1921, at several points between Schaeffer 
reservoir and Pueblo. a 



Point of observation. 


Time. 


Distance 

below 
reservoir. 




9.30 a. m 

10.45 a.m.... 
11.30 a.m.... 

1.30 p.m 

2.15 p.m 


Miles. 







9 






19 






29 


Pueblo 




34 









« Data furnished chiefly by Mr. Arthur O. Ridgway. 

The distance of 9 miles down Beaver Creek was covered in 1 \ hours, 
an average of 7.2 miles an hour. Down the Arkansas the flood 

6 Colorado State Engineer Fifteenth Bienn. Rept., p. 122, 1911. 
84158°— 22 2 



18 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 

traversed a distance of 25 miles in 3^ hours, an average rate of 7.1 
miles an hour. 

The maximum discharge of Beaver Creek was determined as 
153,000 second- feet at a point 1 mile above its mouth. Although this' 
discharge is extremely high, it is entirely reasonable, as the mean 
discharge required to empty the reservoir in 30 minutes would have 
been 87,100 second-feet. (iSee PI. Ill, B.) 

At Pueblo the maximum discharge of the river caused by this 
flood, which lasted from 3 to 4 p. m. on June 5, was 31,000 second-feet. 
Before and after the flood the discharge of the river was about 15,000 
second- feet, and the difference, 16,000 second- feet, represents the flood 
crest from Beaver Creek as it reached Pueblo. Thus in traversing 25 
miles of river that was at medium flood stage the crest decreased 
from 153,000 second-feet to 16,000 second- feet. 

The Skaguay reservoir is formed by a dam across the channel of 
West Beaver Creek. The dam is a steel-faced granite back-filled 
structure, having a maximum height of 70 feet to the spillway level. 
Its length is 405 feet on the crest and 220 feet at the base. The top 
width is 20 feet. The steel-faced upstream slope stands at an angle 
of 30° with the vertical, and the downstream slope at an angle of 50°. 
The spillway is 60 feet wide and is cut through granite beyond the 
northwest end of the dam. It is divided into six parallel channels 
by concrete and timber partitions. (See PL IV, B.) The steel plates 
are sheets measuring 5 by 15 feet and decreasing in thickness from 
half an inch at the bottom to a quarter of an inch at the top. This 
dam successfully withstood the flood, although the water ran over it 
in the low places. To stop this overflow flashboards in the spillway 
were blown out with dynamite, and the consequent sudden release of 
water into the channel below the dam washed out 50 feet of wood- 
stave pipe-line leading to the power house, 5 miles below. 

The Teller reservoir 7 is formed by the construction across Turkey 
Creek of an earth dam having a maximum height of 106 feet, a crest 
length of 770 feet, and a bottom length of about 500 feet. The hills 
that form the abutments of the dam are very steep, and near the top 
the dam abuts against rock cliffs at both ends. The embankment has 
a crest width of 22 feet, an outside slope of 1J to 1, and an inside slope 
of 3 to 1. The inner slope is protected by a reinforced-concrete pave- 
ment 4 inches thick, anchored to the earthwork by concrete plugs 6 
inches in diameter and 2 feet long, spaced 12 feet apart. This con- 
crete pavement is connected with a concrete toe wall, which is carried 
to bedrock across the creek bottom. Concrete cut-off walls were also 
provided where the embankment abuts against the rock cliffs at 
the ends. The outlet consists of a concrete tunnel 7 feet wide and 

'Colorado State Engineer Fifteenth Bienn. Rept., p, 119, 1911. 








M .5 



> c 




FLOOD FLOWS. 19 

6 feet 4 inches high constructed in a trench in the natural ground 
entirely below the artificial embankment. This tunnel is provided 
with two 30-inch pipe inlets equipped with gate valves. A spillway 
for the reservoir was provided over a rock cliff some distance from 
the dam. 

This reservoir successfully withstood the flood, storing all the run- 
off above it until the high water had passed. 

FLOOD FLOWS. 

METHOD OF DETERMINATION. 

As no gaging stations were maintained on the streams within the 
areas of intense rainfall, it was necessary to determine the maximum 
discharge by the slope method after the flood had passed. The work 
Avas done with a plane-table equipped with a Johnson quick-leveling 
head, a reconnaissance alidade having a 3-inch striding level, a 
14-foot stadia rod graduated to half-tenths, and a 100-foot steel tape. 
All distances were measured with the tape and checked by stadia. 

Each tributary stream was measured as near the mouth as the 
condition of the channel permitted. A careful inspection was made 
to locate a segment of channel which was reasonably straight and 
free from brush or other obstruction and in which the discharge 
had been confined to the regular channel with little or no overflow. 
In the portion of the stream measured cross sections were measured 
at the upper end, middle, and lower end. Plate IV, A, shows a typi- 
cal segment. At each of the three sections stakes were set at the 
high-water line on each side of the channel. Beginning at the up- 
stream end a level line was run around the six stakes, closing on the 
initial point with an allowable error of 0.05 foot. The distance on 
each side between stakes was measured along the high-water line. 
The cross section between each pair of stakes on opposite sides of the 
cnannel was carefully measured. The general location of each 
measuring point was determined by reference to section corners. Ow- 
ing to the effect of bends in the channel that could not be entirely 
avoided, the difference in elevation between adjacent cross sections 
was not the same on both sides of the stream, nor was the distance as 
measured along the high-water line the same on both sides. Both 
distances and differences in elevation were averaged to determine the 
mean slope between adjacent sections. 

Each cross section was plotted on a large scale, and the area was 
determined by planimeter. By means of tables based on Kutters 
formula for flow in open channels the discharge between the upper 
and middle cross sections and that between the middle and lower sec- 
tions were determined, the areas of the two cross sections being aver- 



20 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 

aged and the average slope between them being used. The discharge 
through the upper, middle, and lower sections was also determined by 
averaging the hydraulic factors for all three cross sections and using 
the average slope between the upper and lower sections. Thus, three 
separate determinations of the discharge of each stream were made. 
In general, the discharge given by the last-mentioned determination 
was used. Where the difference in area between the upper and lower 
cross sections made a marked difference in the velocity through each 
section, a correction for velocity of approach was applied to the slope 
between them. 

Although the conditions of flow were not the same for all cross sec- 
tions the main channels were uniformly free from vegetation, and as 
the overflow areas were only a small percentage of each cross section 
the value for the coefficient of roughness (n) was taken as 0.035 for 
the tributary streams and 0.030 for Arkansas River above Pueblo. 

The best section of Arkansas River for using the slope method of 
measurement is just west of Pueblo and above Dry Creek. In this 
locality three cross sections of the river valley between well-defined 
high-water marks were measured. The lower section was opposite 
the lower end of the North Side settling basin of the city water- 
works; the middle section 1,230 feet upstream, at the upper end of 
the settling basin ; and the upper section 1,740 feet farther upstream. 
On computing the mean slope between the different sections the 
slope between the middle and lower sections was found to be so 
slight that it was believed to be within the influence of backwater 
from Pueblo and was discarded. The slope for a mean distance of 
1,740 feet between the upper and middle sections was found to be 
0.00125, and the maximum discharge was determined from the mean 
of the areas of the two cross sections as 83,500 second-feet. 

To determine the maximum discharge at Pueblo it was necessary 
to add the flow entering from Dry Creek. It was impossible to de- 
termine definitely the amount of water in Dry Creek at the time 
of the peak flow in Pueblo, as Dry Creek had two floods, one during 
the night of June 2-3 and one the evening of June 3. The maximum 
discharge of the stream in the first flood was found to be 24,400 
second-feet, and as the second flood was somewhat less the discharge 
at the time of the Pueblo peak was assumed to be 19,500 second-feet. 
By adding this assumed discharge of 19,500 second- feet in Dry 
Creek to the discharge of the Arkansas above Dry Creek the maxi- 
mum discharge of the Arkansas at Pueblo was found to be 103,000 
second- feet. 

The results of the field work are given in the following table : 



THE FLOOD BETWEEN CANON CITY AND PUEBLO. 



21 



B6 

3 M 

■SI 

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THE ARKANSAS RIVEK FLOOD OF JUNK 3-f>, 1921. 






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THE FLOOD AT PUEBLO. 23 

THE FLOOD BETWEEN CANON CITY AND PUEBLO. 

From Canon City to Florence, a distance of 8 miles by river, the 
valley is comparatively narrow and was little damaged by the flood. 
The maximum discharge increased from 3,740 second-feet at Canon 
City to 9.000 second-feet at Florence. 8 The tributary streams in this 
section — Oil, Chandler, Sixmile, Oak, and Coal creeks — lie partly 
within the upper of the two areas of intense rainfall but did not have 
as high unit discharges as the tributaries nearer Pueblo. (See table 
of maximum discharge, pp. 21-22.) 

Between Florence and the mouth of Beaver Creek, a distance of 
10 miles, the discharge must have increased considerably, as the 
principal tributaries, Fightmile, Brush Hollow, and Hardscrabble 
creeks, had their flood crests between 7.30 and 8.30 p. m. on June 3, 
about the time the river was highest at Florence. At Portland, 5 
miles below Florence, the highest water occurred at 11 p. m., when 
the water was 4 feet deep in the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad 
station. The water started to fall here at 11.30 p. m. and in an hour 
had fallen 3£ feet. 

From Beaver Creek to Turkey Creek, a distance of 11 miles, the 
maximum stage during the evening of June 3 could not have in- 
creased very greatly, as the tributary streams. Rush and Red creeks 
and Ritchie and Fred Rohr gulches, had their flood crests about 5 
p. m., several hours before the passage of the main flood crest in the 
river. In this stretch the greatest damage was caused not by the 
flood of June 3 but by that of June 5 due to the failure of the 
Schaeffer reservoir on Beaver Creek (p. 17). (See PI. V, B.) 

Between Turkey Creek and Pueblo the discharge of the river in- 
creased very rapidly, as this was the section which received the maxi- 
mum run-off from the areas of intense rainfall. 

THE FLOOD AT PUEBLO. 

GENERAL FEATURES. 

Pueblo, the second city in size in the State, is on Arkansas River 
a few miles east of the foothill region and just above the mouth of 
Fountain Creek. The 1920 census gave its population as 42,908. It 
is an important railroad center, being on the lines of the Atchison, 
Topeka & Santa Fe, Denver & Rio Grande Western, Missouri 
Pacific, and Colorado & Southern railways. It is also an important 
manufacturing center, the steel mills, smelters, railroad car shops, 

s Engineers of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad Co. measured a cross section of the 
river 300 feet below Pikes Peak Avenue bridge and also measured the slope from a point 
1,100 feet upstream to a point 1,100 feet downstream. The slope was found to be 0.0031, 
and the discharge was computed as 9,000 second-feet. 



24 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5 1921. 

foundries, and other manufacturing plants employing about 18,000 
men. The city lies mainly on the flood plain of the river but extends 
onto the bluffs on either side. Originally the river pursued a wind- 
ing course through the city, but its channel Avas straightened and 
levees were built to furnish protection against a flood of 40,000 
second-feet, slightly greater than the maximum discharge of the flood 
of 1894. 

The heavy rains on June 2 and 3 in the region west of Pueblo 
caused several successive rises in the river. The highest rise and 
the one that caused the great damage was the second, which occurred 
on the night of June 3. Dry Creek, which drains an area of 86 
square miles just west of Pueblo on the north side of the Arkansas, 
was subject to its severest flood the night of June 2. This flood 
caused the river at Pueblo to rise by 2 a. m. June 3 to a stage 
of 13.7 feet on the State gage just below the Main Street bridge. 
This rise subsided in a few hours, and as the river channel could 
safely carry a flood of that stage, little damage was done. The in- 
tense rains that began on the afternoon of the 3d caused the river 
to rise rapidly at 5 p. m., and by 8.45 p. m. the levees were overtopped 
at a stage of 18.1 feet. The river continued to rise until at mid- 
night the maximum stage of 24.66 feet was reached. This stage was 
maintained for only a few minutes, and then the river fell almost 
as quickly as it rose, until about 4 a. m. June 4 it had receded to 
the top of the levee (18.1 feet). By 2.30 p. m. the river had fallen 
to a stage of 9.5 feet and by midnight to 9.1 feet. About the time 
the levees were overtopped they broke at several places near the 
west end of the city, and large quantities of water flowed directly 
through the heart of the business section. A third rise reached a 
stage of 11.1 feet at 4 a. m. June 5, but the river quickly subsided 
again and remained at a stage of 9.1 feet until 2.15 p. m., when a 
fourth flood, caused by the breaking of the Schaeffer dam on 
Beaver Creek, reached the city. The river reached a stage of 13 
feet from 3 to 4 p. m. and then fell to 9.1 feet at 7 p. m. By this 
time the flood run-off from the area of heavy rains had passed, and 
the river continued to recede gradually, except for a temporary rise 
to 8 feet at 5.30 p. m. June 6. 

When the levees were overtopped an immense volume of water 
flowed across the old flood plain and through the heart of the busi- 
ness section, which lies on both sides of the river. The area inun- 
dated covered 3 square miles and extended from Sixth and Main 
streets north of the river to the bluffs south of the Denver & Rio 
Grande Railroad yards on the south side of the river. 

The following table shows the height of the high-water mark above 
the sidewalk level on different buildings in the city ; 



U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 



WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 487 PLATE V 




A . SILT 18 INCHES DEEP DEPOSITED IN FRONT OF UNION DEPOT. 




B. OVERTURNED TRACKS ON DENVER & RIO GRANDE RAILROAD WEST OF 
PUERLO. 

Rails attached to underside of ties. 



U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 



WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 487 TLATE VI 








,?. ,;;. 




4. HIGH-WATER MARK ON ELECTRIC BUILDING. 
Picture taken at 15. .'50 a. m. June 4, 1921. 




B. UNION DEPOT ON THE MORNING OF JUNE 4, 1921. 
High-water mark near top of windows. 



THE FLOOD AT PUEBLO. 
High-v:ater mark on different buildings in Pueblo. 



25 



Building. 


Location. 


Height 

above 

sidewalk 






Feet. 
9.8 






9.8 






11.9 


McCarty Block... 




12.5 






12.6 


Post Office 




5.5 






13.2 






14.4 








Plate VI shows views of the Union Depot and Electric Building, 
and Plate V, A, shows the 18-inch deposit of silt left by the flood at 
the Union Depot. 

The first warning of the approaching flood reached the city about 
6 p. m. on the 3d, stating that a wall of water was rushing down the 
river. Messengers were sent out at once to warn the people living in 
the lowlands called Peppersauce Flats. Hundreds of people rushed to 
the levees to witness the approach of the great wall of water, not 
thinking that the city could be inundated, as the levees were believed 
high enough to protect it. The sudden breaking of the levees cut off 
the people from the higher land, and in endeavoring to escape many 
were drowned, as were mam 7 others in the houses in the lowlands who 
had refused to heed the flood warning. Fires broke out almost simul- 
taneously in different parts of the city, terribly illuminating the dark- 
ness caused by the failure of the lighting system. Burning piles of 
timber from a blazing lumber yard drifted through the streets of the 
city, lodging momentarily against frame buildings and setting them 
on fire. It was almost impossible to fight the fires, as the buildings 
were surrounded by water, which prevented the fire department from 
reaching them. Even if the buildings could have been reached, how- 
ever, the breaking of the city water system would have made it im- 
possible to put out the flames. The fires finally burned themselves out. 

ARRIVAL OF TRIBUTARY FLOOD CRESTS. 

A study of the tributary flood crests in their relation to the maxi- 
mum discharge of the Arkansas at Pueblo requires the determination 
of the time of their arrival at that point. This can not be determined 
absolutely but can be estimated with a fair degree of accuracy. The 
time required for the flood from the Schaeffer reservoir to travel the 
25 miles from the mouth of Beaver Creek to Pueblo on June 5 is 
known to be about 3^ hours, a rate of 7.1 miles an hour. (See p. 18.) 
At that time the stage of the river was much lower than when the 
bulk of the water from the tributary streams formed the flood of the 
3d. Consequently the retardation due to channel storage was prob- 



26 



THE ARKANSAS BIVEB FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 



ably greater on the 5th than on the 3d. For the earlier period the 
mean rate of the flood crests from the tributary streams has been 
assumed as 7.5 miles an hour. On this basis the following table has 
been computed : 

Time of arrival of tributary flood crests at Pueblo on June 3-J h 1921. 



Distance 
from 
tribu- 
tary to 
Pueblo. 



Time flood crest 
entered river. 



Time flood crest 
reached Pueblo. 



Dry Creek 

Blue Ribbon Creek . . . 

Unnamed arroyo 

Boggs Creek 

Unnamed arroyo 

Rock Creek 

Pecks Creek 

Cameron Arroyo 

Osteen Arroyo 

Turkey Creek 

Rush Creek 

Red Creek 

Fred Rohr Gulch 

Ritchie Gulch 

Beaver Creek 

Hardscrabble Creek . . 
Brush Hollow Creek. . 

Eightmile Creek 

Coal Creek 

Oak Creek 

Sixmile Creek 

Chandler Creek 

Oil Creek 



8.2 
9.5 
9.8 
11.0 
12.0 
13. 5 
14.2 
16.8 
19.8 
20.0 
22.0 
25.0 
28.8 
31.0 
33.5 
34.5 

35. 2 
35.8 

36. 2 
40.2 



10 p. m. June 3 

11 p. m. June3 — 

11 p. m. June 3 

6.30 p. m. June 3. . 
5.45 p. m. June 3... 

9 p. m. .lane 3 

5.30 p. m. JuneS... 

9 p. m. J une 3 

9 p. m. June 3 

8.30 p. m. June 3... 
5.30 p. m. June 3... 

5 p. m. June 3 

5 p. m. June 3 

5 p. m. June 3 

7.30 a. m. June 4... 
7.30 p. m. June 3.. 

8 p. m. June 3 

8.30 p. m. June 3 .. 

7 p. m. June 3 

7 p. in. June 3 

7.30 p. m. June 3... 

7 p. m. June 3 

11 p. m. June 3 — 



10.15 p. m. JuneS. 
11.35 p. m. June 3. 
11.40 p. m. June 3. 
7.35 p. m. Juno3. 
7 p. m. June 3. 
10.20 p. m. JuneS. 
7 p. in. June 3. 
10.35 p. m. June 3. 
10.50 p. in. June ■'. 
10.25 p. in. June 3. 
7.45 p. in. June 3. 
7.40 p. m. June 3. 
7.40 p. m. June 3. 
7.55 p. in. JuneS. 
10.50 a. m. June 4. 
11.20 p. m. JuneS. 
12.10 a. m. June 4. 
1 a.m. June 4. 
11.35 p. m. June 3. 
11.40 p. ni. June 3. 
12.15a. m. June 4. 
11.50 p. m. JuneS. 
4.20 a. m. June 4. 



Apparently the first flood crests to reach Pueblo were those from 
Boggs, Pecks, Rush, and Red creeks and Fred Rohr and Ritchie 
gulches, all tributaries within a distance of 25 miles. The time of 
their arrival was between 7 and 8 p. m. June 3. These crests were 
probably greatly diminished in volume when they reached Pueblo, 
being affected by the natural storage in the river channel. Although 
the heavy rains continued during the afternoon and evening, and a 
considerable volume of water reached the Arkansas during that 
period, no more flood crests reached Pueblo until late in the evening. 
From 10 p. in. until midnight the floods from the tributaries near 
Pueblo, which were the streams having the greatest flood discharge, 
reached the city. At the same time the flood crests from the most 
distant tributaries also arrived. As the river-channel storage became 
less with increasing stage, the later floods must have reached Pueblo 
in much more nearly their original volumes than the earlier ones. 
The effect of the arrival of all these flood crests is shown on the ac- 
companying hydrograph (fig. 1, p. 28). 



MAXIMUM DISCHARGE. 



The State engineer maintains a gaging station at the Main Street 
bridge in Pueblo, but the gage was entirely destroyed by the flood of 



THE FLOOD AT PUEBLO. 



27 



June 3, and because the area inundated was so wide it was impossible 
to make discharge measurements during the peak flow. After the 
flood the United States Geological Survey determined the maximum 
discharge as 103,000 second-feet. (See p. 20.) 

An idea of the unprecedented discharge of the river during the 
flood is given by the following table showing the available records of 
maximum discharge: 

Annual maximum discharge of Arkansas River at Pueblo for certain years. 



Year. Date. 


Dis- 
charge. 


Year. 


Date. 


Dis- 
charge. 




Second- 
feet. 
4,530 
7,660 
6,520 

39,100 
5,000 
3,440 
3,750 
5,380 
4,890 
6,980 

10,700 
8.320 


1907 


July 28. 


Second- 
feet. 
4,640 


1886... . May 29 


1908 


June 15-16 

Aug. 18 


1,930 


1887... .. July 18 


1909 


5,800 


1894 May 31 


1910 




8,000 


1895 . July 31 


1911 


July 6 


7,000 


1896... . ' Aug. 18 


1912 




10,000 


1897... .. June 2 


1913 


July 23 


7,800 


1898 July 13 


1914 




7,500 


1899... June 20 


1915 




17,000 


1900. .. ..! June2 


1916 




8,900 
6,800 


1901... .. May 21 


1917 




1902 .. Aug. 5 


1918 


June 23.. . 


9,600 
5,230 
4,800 


1903 .. June 9 6.100 


1919 


May 30. . . 


1904 June 15 


3,310 
6,460 
4,880 


1920 




1905. . . June 10 


1921 




103,000 


1906... J June 14 













Note. — For 1901 and from 1909 to 1920 the discharge is that for the maximum stage recorded. For 
the other years the maximum discharge is that for the 24-hour period. 

TOTAL DISCHARGE. 

The recording gage at Pueblo was destroyed by the flood, and no 
continuous record of river height exists. From the testimony of local 
observers and from high-water marks it has been possible to con- 
struct a fairly complete and accurate hydrograph of the Arkansas at 
Pueblo from June 2 to 5 (fig. 1). The most complete record of the 
river during the time of the principal rise was that obtained by Mr. 
B. Milton Stearns, assistant chief train dispatcher of the Denver & 
Rio Grande Railroad. As the water rose in the Union Depot the 
distance to the water surface from a fixed point was measured with a 
level rod and the time noted. This was done at frequent intervals 
from 9 p. m. on the 3d to 7 a. m. on the 4th, the period during which 
the river was above the floor of the Union Depot. The reference 
points used were later connected to the city datum by level, and the 
maximum stage was found to be at 4,684.75 feet above the sea. The 
maximum stage at the river gage at the Main Street bridge was 
determined after the flood, from a well-defined water mark on the 
outside of the new city hall, 150 feet distant. This mark was found 
to be 24.66 feet above the zero of the gage, or 4,681.70 feet above the 
sea, 3.05 feet lower than the maximum observed at the Union Depot. 



28 



THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 



The difference is due chiefly to the fact that the Union Depot is 750 
feet upstream from the river gage and 1,700 feet away from the river. 
A line of levels between high-water marks on the Victoria Avenue 
bridge, in line with the Union Depot, and the Main Street bridge 
showed a difference of 2.1 feet. The remaining difference is proba- 
bly due to the fact that the water surface at the Union Depot was 
higher than at the river, 1,700 feet distant, as shown by level lines run 
after the flood. 



< 14 



2 6 















































y 


























































































\ 




























/ 


\ 




























/ 




\ 




















A 






/ 




\ 










[\ 










\ 






1 




\ 






/N 


v 


\ 








__J 


\ 












v — 


1 


/ 


\_ 


J 


\ 










\ 






















-/ 








V. 


1 

















































































June 2 



June 3 



June 5 



June 4 

Figure 1. — Hydrograph of Arkansas River at Pueblo, showing stage of river from 
June 2 to June 5, 1921. 

The data covering the rise from the Dry Creek flood in the early 
morning of June 3 were taken from the continuous chart on the re- 
cording gage shortly before it was destroyed. Data for the remainder 
of the time were obtained by the State engineer's office from several 
reliable sources. 

The hydrograph of June 2-5 (fig. 1) shows that although the 
maximum discharge was high the river rose and fell so quickly 
that the total discharge in acre-feet for the flood period was com- 
paratively small. The rainfall in the affected area was very heavy, 
but it ceased so soon that the extremely high run-off from the steep 
slopes of the tributary streams was of very short duration. Fur- 
thermore, the time of maximum rainfall was not the same on all 
tributaries but in general was latest on the tributaries near Pueblo. 



THE FLOOD AT PUEBLO. 29 

This caused the peak flows from the near-by tributaries to reach 
Pueblo at the same time as the peak flows from the more distant 
streams, producing the most favorable conditions possible for a flood 
of great height. 

It is impossible to determine accurately the total discharge at 
Pueblo during the flood, owing to the great size of the area over- 
flowed, the breaks in the levee, and the scour in the main channel 
caused by the flood. The discharge up to the time the levees were 
overtopped and broke, about 9 p. m. June 3, can be determined satis- 
factorily, as a fair rating curve for the State gage is available. For 
the remainder of the period only a rough estimate can be made. The 
peak flow at the maximum stage of 24.66 feet was 103.000 second- 
feet. (See p. 20.) To determine the discharge at the time the levees 
were overtopped it was assumed that of the total scour of 1.4 feet 
noted after the flood, about 0.5 foot had occurred at that time, and 
the flow through the breaks in the levees was estimated to be 10,000 
second-feet. Although this estimate may be as much as 100 per cent 
in error the effect of such an error on the entire discharge would be 
very small. 

As explained on page 24, the levees were built to protect the city 
against a flood flow of 40,000 second-feet, which would reach a gage 
height of 18.1 feet. The additional flow permitted by the scour of 
0.5 foot, however, would give a discharge of 40,000 second-feet at 
gage height 17.6 feet. Adding the 10,000 feet that escaped through 
the breaks would give a flow of 50,000 second-feet at gage height 
17.6 feet. From this figure and the maximum discharge at 24.66 feet 
(103.000 second- feet) an approximate rating curve was plotted for 
use between 9 p. m. and midnight. 

As the river fell the scouring action continued until at the time the 
river was once more within its channel the gage height was 0.9 foot 
lower for the same discharge than it was when the break had just 
occurred. 

The lower part of the rating curve was defined by a measure- 
ment made by the State engineer's office at a stage of 5.6 feet, showing 
a discharge of 6,270 second-feet. By applying the above-described 
rating curve to the hydrograph the total discharge from 8 a. m. June 
2, at the time the river first started to rise, until midnight of June 5, 
after the flood had passed, was found to be 145,000 acre-feet. Of this 
amount 90,000 acre- feet was the total flow from noon of June 3 to 
midnight of June 4. 

It was impossible to determine the total discharge of the tributary 
streams. 



30 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 

THE FLOOD BELOW PUEBLO. 
GENERAL FEATURES. 

Practically all gages on the river between Pueblo and the Kansas 
line were destroyed by the flood, making it impossible to obtain rec- 
ords of maximum discharge in the regular manner. Data regarding 
flood discharges were obtained chiefly from the State engineer's 
office for different points in the Arkansas Valley. 

The stages and discharges of Arkansas River at La Junta during 
the passage of the flood crest are given in the following table : 

Stages and discharges of Arkansas Rlrc)- at J, a Junta, ./ nnc .)—'), 1921. 



Time. 


Gage 
height. 


Approxi- 
mate 
discharge. 


Time. 


Gage 
height. 


Approxi- 
mate 
discharge. 




Feet. 
3.65 
4.35 
4.75 
5.0 
16.8 
17.7 


Second- 
feet. 
3,050 
6,400 
9,000 
11,400 
162,000 
a200,000 




Feet. 
17.7 
16.8 
15.1 

11.15 
7.4 


Second- 
feet. 
200,000 
162,000 
125,000 
69,000 
21,000 


12.30 p.m 

1.30p.m 










2.30p. m 




P 













a The State engineer's office measured a cross section of the river at the head of the Fort Lyon canal, 3 
miles west of La Junta, and the slope of the river from a point 2,700 feet upstream to a point 2,400 feet down- 
stream. The mean slope was found to be 0.0015, and the discharge was computed as 200,000 second-feet. 

The increase in the maximum flood flow from 103,000 second-feet 
at Pueblo to 200,000 second-feet at La Junta was due to the discharge 
of the intervening tributaries, St. Charles River and Fountain, Salt, 
and Chico creeks, all of which were affected by the heavy rainfall. 
The table on page 22 shows the quantity and approximate time of the 
maximum discharges of these tributaries, obtained from local resi- 
dents. 

The crest flow of the river was increased chiefly by the flood from 
St. Charles River, which reached its crest within an hour of the ar- 
rival of the peak flow from Pueblo. Although Fountain Creek did not 
reach its maximum until about 3 a. m. June 4, or three hours after the 
peak at Pueblo, it is certain that at the time of the Pueblo peak the 
Fountain Creek discharge was at least 15,000 or 20,000 second-feet. 
Salt Creek also contributed 32,000 second-feet to the peak flow, much 
of it from the St, Charles River basin, although its own peak did 
not occur until two hours later. 

Information regarding the flood between La Junta and Holly is 
very meager, but the available data are summarized below. 

The Weather Bureau gage at Fort Lyon, 3 miles east of Las Ani- 
mas, showed the maximum stage to be 15 feet, at 11 p. m. June 4. 



THE FLOOD BELOW PUEBLO. 



31 



The crest stage of the flood of October 19, 1908, was 10.1 feet, or 4.9 
feet lower. 

Mr. Oscar Hellbeck, engineer for the Arkansas Valley Sugar 
Beet & Irrigated Land Co., made the following computations of the 
discharge of Arkansas River over the diversion dam of the Amity 
canal, 2 miles east of Prowers : 9 

Discharge of Arkansas River at Amity canal, June 4-5, 1921. 



Time. 


Depth 
over dam. 


Discharge. 


Time. 


Depth 
over dam. 


Discharge. 




Feet. 


Second-feet. 
2,000 
6,000 
10,000 
15,000 
20,000 
28.000 




Feet. 
8.5 
9.0 
9.0 
8.5 
8.0 
8.0 
8.0 
7.5 
7.0 


Second-feet. 
155,000 






4.30 a. m 


170,000 
170,000 
155,000 
130,000 






8.00 a. m 




2.5 
3.0 
4.0 


8.30 a. m 




9.00 a. m 




10.00 a. m 


130,000 


2.00 a. m 


5. 5 45. 000 


11.00 a. m 


130,000 




6.0 
7.0 
7.5 


55,000 
80,000 
110,000 


12.00 a. m 


110,000 




l.OOp.m 


80,000 
55,000 




9.00 p. m 


6.0 









At Lamar the river started to rise at 4 a. m. June 5. At 8 a. m. 
the gage read 10.4 feet, and at 11 a. m. the crest height of 11.9 feet 
was reached. This stage continued until 1 p. m., when the river 
started to fall. The flood was 2 or 3 feet higher than that of 1904, 
the greatest flood previously recorded. 

At Holly the high-water mark was determined from levels after 
the flood to be about 9.1 feet above the datum of the State gage. 
The discharge was estimated as 120,000 second-feet. 



TRIBUTARY STREAMS. 

The tributary streams below Pueblo chiefly affected by the flood 
were Fountain, Chico, and Salt creeks and St. Charles River. These 
streams, unlike the tributaries above Pueblo, which had a very high 
but short flood run-off, had sustained high stages. This was due 
tc the fact that the rain extended over the greater part of their 
drainage areas, and although it was not as heavy as that over the 
smaller areas of the upper tributaries, it caused high stages in the 
streams, on account of the comparatively large drainage areas. For 
the same reason the high run-off was not concentrated at one time 
but continued for 24 hours or longer. 

FOUNTAIN CREEK. 

Fountain Creek is formed by a number of small streams on the 
north slope of Pikes Peak, of which Catamount and Cascade creeks 

9 Hosea, R. G., unpublished report on Arkansas River flood, dated August 15, 1921. 



32 



THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 



are the largest. In its upper course Fountain Creek flows through 
canyons and has a heavy fall, which in the lower part of Ute Pass 
amounts to 300 feet in a little more than half a mile. Near Colorado 
Springs the creek leaves the mountains and enters upon the plains, 
across which it flows southward to its mouth a short distance below 
Pueblo. At Colorado Springs it is joined by Monument Creek, 
which rises in Palmer Lake, on the divide between the Arkansas 
and South Platte drainage basins. Other important tributaries are 
Rock and Little Fountain creeks, which rise in the mountains south 
of Colorado Springs. Fountain Creek flows over a sandy bed, and 
although it has considerable underflow, ordinarily it carries very 
little water at the surface. Its drainage area is 932 square miles. 
The only marked topographic features on the generally level sur- 
face of the plains consist of scores of little conical hills called " tepee 
buttes," most of them less than 50 feet high. 

The following table has been compiled from topographic maps : 

Elevations and distances along Fountain Creek from Monument Creek to mouth. 





Eleva- 
tion 

above 
sea 

level. 


Distance. 


Descent between 
points. 


Point. 


From 
Monu- 
ment 
Creek. 


Point to 
point. 


Total. 


Per 
mile. 




Feet. 
5,900 
5,700 
5,500 
5,300 
5,200 
5,000 
4,850 
4,700 
4,660 


Miles. 


Miles. 


Feet. 


Feet. 




10.0 
16.1 
23.4 
28.0 
36.2 
43.8 
49.6 
52.0 


10.0 
6.1 
7.3 
4.6 

8.2 
7.6 
5.8 
2.4 


260 
200 
200 
100 
200 
150 
150 
40 


26 




33 




27 




22 




24 




20 


Eden 


26 




17 







On June 3 a heavy rain that extended over the greater part of the 
drainage basin began about 9 p. m. and lasted all night From Foun- 
tain station to Pueblo, according to local residents, the storm was 
the worst in many years, but no estimates have been made regarding 
the total rainfall. At Colorado Springs, near the north end of the 
basin, the Weather Bureau record showed the rainfall for the 24 
hours ending 8 a. m. June 4 to be 1.87 inches. It was evidently 
heavier farther south, as indicated by the statements regarding the 
storm, but it is not believed to have been as severe as that in the areas 
of intense rainfall. 



THE FLOOD BELOW PUEBLO. 



33 



Time of flood floir at points 011 Fountain Creek. 



Point of observation . 


Distance 
above 
mouth. 


Approximate time of flood 
flow. 




.Miles. 
28 
23 
15 

11 
8 











11.30 p.m. 




Eden 


After midnight. 


Mouth 






a Flood came very suddenly. 

Stage and discharge of Fountain Creek at 


mouth. 


Time. 


Stage. 


Approxi- 
mate dis- 
charge. 







Second-feet. 
100 








4,000 


June 4, 2.30 a. m 


fi feet deep, 400 f ( 
Crest . . 






12,000 


3 a. m 






34,000 
25,000 








6 feet below crest 
4 feet below cres' 
feet below cresi 

7 feet below crest 






12,000 








18,000 








12,000 








10,000 








4.000 









The total discharge was about 70,000 acre-feet. 

ST. CHARLES RIVER. 

St. Charles River drains the eastern slope of the southern half of 
the Greenhorn Range and the foothill region lying between that 
range and the Arkansas. After leaving the mountains the St. 
Charles flows through a canyon for 10 miles, below which the valley 
widens, and the river finally emerges upon the plain, across 
which it flows in a northeasterly direction to its junction with the 
Arkansas, 8 miles below Pueblo. Its chief tributaries are Spring 
Branch and Greenhorn Creek. The topography of its drainage basin 
is very rough, as the stream traverses the steep slopes of the moun- 
tains, the deeply eroded foothill region, and the rolling plains next 
to the Arkansas. The drainage area is 482 square miles. 

The following table has been compiled from topographic maps : 
Elevations and distances along St. Charles River from sourec to mouth. 



Eleva- 
tion 
above 
sea level. 



From 
source. 



Point to 
point. 



Descent between 
points. 



Total. Per mile. 



Source 

Contour crossing 

Do 

Do 

Do 

Do 

Do 

Do 

Mouth 



Feet. 
9,000 
6,250 
5,750 
5, 250 
5,000 
4,800 
4,700 
4,600 
4,560 






Feet. 



6.5 I 
10.7 

18.5 
24.7 
31.9 



6.5 
4.2 

7.8 
6.2 
7.2 
4.1 
4.7 



2,750 
500 
500 
250 
200 
100 
100 
40 



420 
119 
64 



24 
21 
33 



34 



THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 



Although little if any of the St. Charles drainage basin lies within 
the area of intensest rainfall, it was subject to very heavy rain, 
which began during the evening of June 3, and lasted through the 
night. The crest flow occurred about 1 a. m. June 4 and lasted for 
an hour. From measurements of cross section and slope this dis- 
charge was estimated to be 71,800 second-feet. 

Estimated discharge of St. Charles River, June 3-7, 1921. 




June 3, 4.00 p. m.. 
June 4, 1.10a.m.. 

2.30 a.m.. 

4.00 a.m.. 

9.00 a.m.. 

6.00 p.m.. 

8.30 p.m.. 
June 5, 8.00 a.m.. 

5.00 p.m.. 

Midnight. . 
June 6, 6.00 p.m.. 
June 7, Noon 



Before flood 

Crest 

Slightly below crest . . 

3 feet below crest 

6 feet below crest 

8 feet below crest 

Started to rise 



Sec.-ft. 

50 
71,800 
60,000 
34,000 
7,500 
4,000 



1,000 

550 

1,650 

1,000 

350 



The total discharge was about 60,000 acre-feet. 

CHICO CREEK. 

The area drained by Chico Creek joins that of Fountain Creek 
on the west. Chico Creek rises in the central part of El Paso 
County, 15 miles east of Colorado Springs, and flows southward to the 
Arkansas, which it joins 14 miles east of Pueblo. Its principal 
tributary, Black Squirrel Creek, enters Chico Creek a few miles 
above the mouth. Throughout the upper half of its course the 
creek has an average fall of 65 feet to the mile; in the lower half 
the fall is 29 feet to the mile. The drainage basin lies wholly within 
the area of the Great Plains and has a rolling topography. On ac- 
count of the small normal rainfall, Chico Creek carries little water 
except after heavy rains. The total drainage area is 750 square 
miles. 

No information regarding rainfall in this basin during the flood 
is available, but as Chico Creek drains an area adjacent to that of 
Fountain Creek the general storm probably extended over its basin 
also. 

The State engineer's office measured the cross section and slope of 
Chico Creek near the mouth and determined the crest discharge to 
be 28,600 second-feet. 



PREVIOUS FLOODS. 
Estimated discharge of Chico Creek, June 3-6, 1921. 



35 



Approxi- 
mate dis- 
charge. 



June 3 

June 4 

4 a.m 

9 a. m 

Midnight. 
June5, 8 a.m 

9a. m 

9p.m 

June 6,6p.m 



Creek dry 

Rise after midnight 

Crest 

4 feet deep 

75 per cent of crest flow. . 

3 feet deep 

2 feet deep 



Sec.-ft. 



Creek dry . 



28,600 
4,000 
21,000 
2,500 
1,050 
800 




The total discharge was about 36,000 acre-feet. 

PREVIOUS FLOODS. 10 

FLOOD OF INDIAN LEGEND. 

As the permanent settlement of Pueblo and the upper Arkansas 
Valley began about 1859. records of floods prior to that time are not 
available. Reports were common among the early settlers of an In- . 
dian legend regarding a flood occurring before the whites came, in 
which, it was stated, the water reached from bluff to bluff. The truth 
or falsity of this legend can be determined only by circumstantial 
evidence. 

One of the early settlers of Pueblo, a Mr. Proffitt, who passed 
through the Arkansas Valley on his way to the Mexican War in 1846, 
stated that he saw evidence of a former flood along the river below 
the site of the present city of Pueblo. The cottonwood trees along 
the river were tipped downstream and still bore drift in their 
branches. The flood causing this must have occurred prior to 1846, 
as Oliver (" Old Scout ") Wiggins, an early settler of Colorado, who 
testified to the early flow of Arkansas River in the Kansas- Colorado 
water suit, stated that in that year there was a great drought, during 
which all the buffalo perished or left the country. This statement is 
substantiated by Ruxton, an English Army officer, who visited the 
region in 1847 and recorded ("Adventures in Mexico and the Rocky 
Mountains") that there were no buffalo but many skeletons. 

In writing of Fremont County, Rockafellow 1X states that the first 
white settler was a French trader named Maurice, who lived near the 
mouth of Adobe Creek. Maurice told the pioneers that 4 feet of 
snow fell all over the valley in 1844 and lay there three " moons." He 
fixed the year as that of the great flood at St. Louis, which was 1844. 
Maurice did not mention a later flood, but authentic history records 

10 Based chiefly on data furnished by Mr. A. J. Weston, of the Denver & Rio Grande 
Western Railroad Co. 

11 History of Arkansas Valley, Chicago, O. L. Baskin & Co., 1881. 



36 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 

one of the greatest floods in the lower Arkansas River as occurring 
in 1844. Rufus Sage, 12 who crossed this region in that year, records 
the fact that the streams in the lower Arkansas Valley were of un- 
precedented size and velocity, and this caused frequent delays to his 
journey. At Paunee Fork his party was compelled to wait four weeks 
to ford the river. 

The foregoing evidence indicates that the flood of Indian legend 
probably occurred during 1844. 

Mr. Archie Proffitt, a resident of Pueblo, states that an Indian 
showed his uncle, who came to Pueblo in 1859, river silt in crevices 
of the rock along the mesa near City Park, which the Indian claimed 
was the high-water mark of an old flood. This mark w T as at about 
the elevation of the floor of the viaduct, which is 12 feet above the 
flood of 1921. It may have been made by the flood of Indian legend. 

FLOODS OF AUTHENTIC RECORD. 

Regular observations of the stage of Arkansas River began in 
1885, when a gaging station was established at Rock Canyon, 9 
miles above Pueblo. This station was maintained until late in 1887. 
The station at Pueblo was established in the fall of 1894 and has been 
maintained almost continuously since that time. Records of floods 
from the settlement of the Arkansas Valley to the establishment 
of the gaging station on the river are found chiefly in the files of the 
local newspapers and in the testimony of witnesses in the Kansas- 
Colorado w T ater suit before the United States Supreme Court. 

The first flood of authentic record occurred in 1855, after a winter 
of very heav}^ snowfall, although the flood itself was probably caused 
by hard rain during a period of melting snow. No information re- 
garding the exact date and approximate height of this flood is 
available. 

The next flood recorded was that of June 11, 1864. caused chiefly 
by very heavy rains. The early settlers in Pueblo agree that this 
flood reached a point near Third and Santa Fe avenues. The flood 
of 1921 was nearly 3 feet deep at this point, and if, as seems prob- 
able, the street has been graded down since 1864, the latest flood may 
have been but very little higher than that one. As Pueblo was then 
but a small settlement of less than 100 inhabitants, with only a few 
houses to obstruct the flood flow, it is probable that the same amount 
of water now would reach a considerably higher stage in the city. 
During this flood all the streams in the valley were very high and 
overflowed their banks for great distances, Turkey, Beaver, and 
Hardscrabble creeks being especially high. Fountain Creek was the 
first to rise, and many cabins on its banks at a point back of the 

12 Rocky Mountain life, Boston. Wentworth. Hewes & Co., 1858. 



PREVIOUS FLOODS. 37 

present steel works were washed away. No loss of life was re- 
ported. No records of precipitation covering the period of the flood 
are available. 

A flood during May, 1867, caused the removal of Fort Lyon to a 
point 17 miles farther west. The rainfall for May was 4.84 inches, 
as compared with a normal of 2 inches. 

During a flood in June, 1869, the river, it is said, contained an im- 
mense amount of water. 

The files of the Pueblo Chieftain contain notes concerning several 
floods during 1875, of which the largest was on September 16 and 
was caused by heavy rains. The following statement concerning this 
flood is taken from the Las Animas Leader of September 18 and 25, 
1875 : 13 

On September 16 a rush of water came down from Purgatory River at Las 
Animas, Colo. The water was 5 feet higher than at any previous time that 
year. The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Co.'s tracks were under water for one- 
half mile on each side of the Purgatory, the bridge being 3 to 4 feet under water, 
At Fort Lyon the water was 4 feet higher than ever known before. The bottom 
land between the bridge and the post trader's (a distance of three-fourths of a 
mile) was a swift, raging flood. Up the Purgatory considerable damage was 
done, the greatest losses being of cordwood, stacked hay. cattle, fences, and 
adobe houses. The Arkansas above the mouth of the Purgatory was also in 
flood at this time, there being reports of damage as far up as Pueblo. The 
Apishapa brought in a large amount of this water, and the flood height was the 
highest in 15 years. 

This flood could not have been unusually high in the upper river, 
as the Pueblo papers did not give any great space to it. 

Some minor floods occurred during July and August, 1880, and 
August, 1881. For 1880 the few available rainfall records show 
nearly twice the normal amount during the flood months, and for 
1881 the Pikes Peak record showed nearly three times the normal 
rainfall during August. 

A flood of considerable magnitude in the Arkansas and Purgatoire 
near Las Animas occurred July 20-25, 1886. The rainfall at Las 
Animas was 3.36 inches during July 24 and 25 and 4.66 inches for the 
month, or more than twice the normal. This flood was not severe at 
Pueblo, as the newly established gaging station showed a maximum 
of only 3,080 second-feet on July 21. The rainfall at Pueblo for July 
was only 0.39 inch. 

The next flood recorded was that of August 10, 1889. The Denver 
Republican of that elate stated that rain began falling about 5.30 p. m. 
August 9 and flooded the region around Pueblo. The issue of August 
11 stated that " a terrible and disastrous rainstorm visited Florence 
August 9 in the evening, lasting two hours. The Denver & Rio 

"Meeker, R. I., Purgatory River flood: U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 147, 
p. 165, 1905. 



38 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 

Grande is having lots of trouble caused by the cloud-burst of Friday 
night. The Hardscrabble bridge washed out." That this flood was 
of considerable magnitude at Pueblo is inferred from the statement 
that the city council on August 12 appropriated $3,000 to repair and 
strengthen the levee. All obstructions in the channel were ordered 
removed. Pueblo reported 1.02 inches of rain in one hour August 9. 
This intense rainfall, with a temperature of 98° before the storm, 
indicated a cloud-burst, which was local to the valley between Pueblo 
and Canon City. 

No unusual floods are recorded after 1889 until 1893. Although 
this was the second driest year in 35 years, as shown by records of 
precipitation at Pueblo, the flood on July 26, 1893, seems to have been 
the fourth in magnitude in three-quarters of a century. The river 
reached a stage 10 feet lower than that of 1921. The Rocky Mountain 
News of July 27, 1893, stated as follows : 

Heavy rain at Pueblo broke the levee and did $200,000 damage. Xt 9 p. m. 
July 26 the river began to rise and rose 8 feet in 2 hours. A saloon standing 
in the levee became undermined and fell into the channel. Water rushed through 
the break in the levee, and in 10 minutes the city hall was surrounded by 6 feet 
of water. The crest of this flood is said to have reached the floor of the Union 
Depot. 

The rainfall at Pueblo was 1.36 inches on July 26 and 0.22 inch on 
the 27th. The precipitation for the year was 6.84 inches, as compared 
with a normal precipitation of 12.50 inches. 

The most destructive flood in the history of the Arkansas Valley 
prior to the flood of 1921 occurred May 30, 1894. Heavy precipita- 
tion on May 30 and 31 extended over the Arkansas drainage basin, 
taking the form of snow at the higher elevations, notably on Pikes 
Peak and the mountains in the upper end of the basin. On the eve- 
ning of May 30 Salida reported that rain hag! fallen continuously for 
36 hours and probably would continue during that night. For dura- 
tion and volume the storm at that point exceeded anything in the 
memory of the oldest inhabitant. At the same time Florence re- 
ported that rain had fallen for the preceding 24 hours and that 
the amount was estimated at 3 to 4 inches. Castle Rock and Palmer 
Lake reported rain on May 30. The rainfall on the 30th and 31st 
at Pueblo was 3.02 inches and at Canon City on the 29th and 30th 
5.06 inches. The following account of the flood is printed in the 
.Rocky Mountain News of May 31, 1894, in a communication dated 
at Pueblo May 30: 

In consequence of an all-day downpour of rain such as has not occurred in 
this valley in 20 years, the Arkansas River to-night came up and broke the 
levees in four places on the north side and two on the south side. Everything 
is a sea of water from Union Avenue viaduct to the post office. All business 
cellars are rilled in that territory, and the water is over the floors from 6 inches 



PREVIOUS FLOODS. 39 

to 2 feet. This is a worse flood than any that has occurred since the town 
became a city. The water flows with a strong current through the streets, and 
everything is confusion. The flood covers the city from Union Avenue on the 
south side to Fourth Avenue on the north side, an area of three-quarters of a 
mile. 

The issue of the News on June 1 stated that on Second Street be- 
tween Santa Fe Avenue and Main Street the water was 4 feet deep 
over the floors of the buildings. Five lives were lost in Pueblo and 
damage amounting to nearly $2,000,000 was done to property. 

At its highest stage the water was 3 feet deep in the Denver & Rio 
Grande Railroad freight yard and kept that stage from 2 to 8.30 
a. m. May 31. It receded slowly and by 6 a. m. June 1 had fallen 
only 4J feet. The highest stage was about 7 feet less than that of 
the flood of 1921. 

Subsequent to the flood the city engineer, Mr. E. W. Hathaway, 
measured the slope of the river and its flood cross section just west 
of the city. He found the maximum discharge of the flood to be 
39,100 second-feet, of which 24,200 second-feet had been carried by 
the river channel and the remainder flowed through the city on both 
sides of the river. Subsequently the river channel in Pueblo was 
widened and the levees raised so that the improved channel would 
carry 40,000 second- feet. 

In the Arkansas Valley above Pueblo the flood of 1894 reached a 
higher stage than that of 1921, the high- water mark on the old 
Denver & Rio Grande Railroad pump house at Florence being 2 feet 
higher than that of June 3, 1921. The crest of the flood reached 
Rocky Ford some time during May 31. Lamar reported the flood 
crest at noon June 2. The upper limit of the flood area was about 
Hardscrabble Creek, which carried an unusual flood flow. Coal and 
Chandler creeks were also very high. 

Heavy rains on June 5, 1894, extending from Canon City to 
Pueblo, again raised the Arkansas until it reached a stage at Pueblo 
about 8 inches lower than that of May 31. The rainfall on June 5 
was 1.82 inches at Canon City and 0.64 inch at Pueblo. 

The lower Arkansas Valley was visited by very severe floods dur- 
ing 1904, but they did not reach the upper valley. Between Wichita 
and Arkansas City the flood of July 9, 1904, was the severest known. 
For ten days before that date the maximum discharge at Pueblo was 
1,520 second-feet. On September 30, 1904, the severest flood known 
occurred on Purgatoire River. This flood caused a great amount 
of damage on Arkansas River below the mouth of the Purgatoire, 14 
but it did not affect the Arkansas Valley above the Purgatoire. The 
maximum discharge at Pueblo for the week preceding September 30 
was 1,100 second-feet, 

14 Meeker, R. I., U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 147, pp. 165-168, 1905. 



40 THE ARKANSAS RIVER FLOOD OF JUNE 3-5, 1921. 

The next serious flood in the Arkansas Valley, and the last one 
before 1921, occurred October 19-21, 1908, and affected the area east 
of La Junta. It was due to very heavy rains. Records kept by the 
Amity Canal Co. at various points showed a rainfall of 6 inches 
or more extending from Prowers to Holly. Practically all the rain 
was believed to have fallen in eight hours during the night of Octo- 
ber 18. The area affected by the flood extended from La Junta on 
the west to Lamar on the east and from the Missouri Pacific Rail- 
road on the north to the south boundary of Otero, Bent, and Prowers 
counties on the south. The maximum stage of the river at Holly 
was 11 feet on the river gage. The maximum discharge at this 
point was estimated from cross sections and slope measurements made 
after the flood as 136,000 second-feet. The flood at the Amity dam 
was estimated as greater than 100,000 second-feet. 15 

That this flood did not affect the upper river is shown by the 
fact that the maximum discharge of the Arkansas at Pueblo for a 
week prior to the flood was only 298 second- feet, which shows that 
there was no flood at Pueblo within the time it would have taken 
for flood flow there to reach La Junta by October 19. 

MAXIMUM DISCHARGES PER SQUARE MILE PREVIOUSLY 
RECORDED. 

During the flood of 1921 the tributary streams had maximum dis- 
charges per square mile that were almost unprecedented in the Rocky 
Mountain States. The only recorded unit discharge that equaled 
them was that of Hogan's Gulch near Eden, Colo., a station on the 
Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad between Colorado Springs 
and Pueblo. Here a cloud-burst on August 7, 1904, caused a flood 
that was estimated to have a maximum discharge of 9,640 second-feet 
from a drainage area of 6.1 square miles, or 1,580 second-feet per 
square mile. 16 

It is apparent that streams draining small areas in the foothill 
region subject to cloud-bursts must have had as high discharges in 
the past as those that caused the recent flood, but no record of such 
discharges has been made. 

The following table shows the greatest previously recorded unit 
run-offs in the Rocky Mountain States, arranged in order of unit 
magnitude : 

15 Freeman, W. B., U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 274, pp. 33-40, 1910. 

16 Data furnished by Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad Co. 



PREVIOUS FLOODS. 41 

Maximum discharges previously recorded for streams in Rocky Mountain States. 



Maximum 
discharge. 



Drain- 
age 
area. 



Period 

of 
maxi- 
mum 
discharge. 



Mora River at La Cueva, N. Mex 

GaUinas River at Hot Springs, N . Mex 

Canadian River at French, N. Mex 

Mora River at Weber, N. Mex 

Purgatoire River at Trinidad, Colo 

North Fork of Sun River near Augusta, Mont. 

Bear Creek at Morrison, Colo 

Willow Creek near Augusta, Mont 

Two Butte Creek at mouth, Colo 

North Fork of Cache la Poudre River at Liver- 
more, Colo 

Willow Creek near Augusta, Mont 

Crow Creek at Cheyenne, Wyo 

Cherry Creek at Denver, Colo 



Sept. 29,1904 
Sept. 30, 1904 
October, 1904 
Sept. 30, 1904 

do 

June 21,1916 
July 24,1896 
May 26,1917 
October, 1908 

May 20,1904 
June 23,1916 
May 20,1904 
July 14,1912 



Sec.-ft. 
22,200 
11,600 

156,000 
27,700 
45,400 
32,300 
8,600 
3,740 
35,000 

20,000 
3,400 
8,500 

11,000 



Sec.-ft. 
140 
129 
105 
94 
61 
54 



Sq. mi. 
159 

90 
1,480 
294 
742 
600 
180 

90 
900 

532 
90 
251 

445 



Hours. 
12 

1 



3 

9.5 



One of the most complete lists of flood flows in various parts of the 
country is contained in a paper by Emil Kuichling. 17 A general 
discussion of destructive floods in the United States is given in the 
following water-supply papers of the United States Geological Sur- 
vey : 

96. Destructive floods in the United States in 1903, by E. O. Murphy. 
147. Destructive floods in the United States in 1904, by E. C. Murphy. 
162. Destructive floods in the United States in 1905, by E. C. Murphy and 
others. 

Man}' references to flood literature are also given in appendix 7 of 
the report of the Flood Commission, Pittsburgh, Pa. 



7 Flood flows : Am. Soc. Civil Eng. Trans., vol. 77, pp. 650-662, 1914. 



INDEX. 



Page. 

Acknowledgments for aid 6 

Amity canal, discharge of Arkansas 

River at 31 

Amsley, H. D., acknowledgment to — 6 

Arkansas River, course of 9 

discharge of 21,26-29,30,31 

elevations and distances along- 11 

tributaries of 10 

Arkansas Valley between Canon City 
and Pueblo, Colo., map 
of 6 

Baggage car, overturned, plate show- 
ing 8 

Beaver Creek, flood in 16-18 

view on, 1 mile from mouth, 

plate showing 18 

Blue Ribbon Creek, rainstorm on 14, 15 

Boggs Flat, rainstorm on 14 

Burke, C. F., description of rain- 
storm by 15 

Canon City, Colo., flood flow at and 

below 2.S 

Cause of the flood 11-15 

Chico Creek, course and fall of 34 

flood flow on 31, 34-35 

Cloud-bursts, production of 11 

Colorado, maximum discharges per 

square mile in 41 

Creeks, computed discharge of 19-22 

Crest of flood, progress of 8-9 

Denver & Rio Grande Western Rail- 
road Co., acknowledg- 
ment to 6 

overturned baggage car on, 

plate showing 8 

overturned tracks of, plate 

showing 24 

Discharges of streams, determination 

of 19-20 

results of determinations of 21-22 

Discharges per square mile, maxi- 
mum recorded in the 
Rocky Mountain 

States 40-41 

Drought of 1846, testimony on 35 

Dry Creek, rainstorm on 13, 14 

rise from flood on 21, 24, 28 

Eightmile Creek, rainstorm on 13, 15 

typical section of, plate show- 
ing 19 

Electric Building, Pueblo, Colo., 
high-water mark on, 
plate showing 25 



Page. 
Elevations and distances along Ar- 
kansas River 11 

Extent of the flood 6-8 

Farris, J. H. t description of rain- 
storm by 15 

Flood crests from tributary streams, 

arrival of, at Pueblo. 25-26 

Flood of Indian legend 35,36 

of September, 1875, newspaper 

account of 37 

of 1864, extent of 36-37 

of 1889, newspaper report of__ 37-38 

of 1893, account of 38 

of 1894, account of 38-39 

of 1908, account of 40 

Floods of authentic record 36-40 

Florence, Colo., flood flow at and 

below 23 

Follansbee, Robert, work of 6 

Fort Lyon, Colo., flood stage at 30 

Fountain Creek, course and descent 

of 32 

flood flow on 31, 32-33 

Gilbert, G. K., cited 10 

Higgins, E. C, description of rain- 
storm by 15 

Hodges, P. V., work of 6 

Hogan's Gulch, Colo., cloud-burst at_ 40 

Holly, Colo., high-water mark at 31 

Hosea, R. G., acknowledgment to__ 6 

Hoyt, Kendall K., work of 6 



Investigation by the United States 
Geological Survey 



5-6 



Johnson, F. R., acknowledgment to__ 6 

Jones, Edward E., work of 6 

La Junta, Colo., flood flow at 30 

Lamar, Colo., flood flow at 31 

Las Animas (Colo.) Leader, cited __ 37 
Lightburn, C. M., acknowledgment 

to :___ 6 

Literature on floods 41 

Losses from the flood 6—8 

Montana, maximum discharges per 

square mile in 41 

New Mexico, maximum discharges per 

square mile in 41 

Portland, Colo., flood flow at 23 

43 



44 



INDEX. 



Page. 
Pueblo, Colo., account of the flood 

at 24-25 

arrival of tributary flood crests 

at 25-26 

description of 23-24 

discharge of Arkansas River at, 

maximum 26-27 

total 27-29 

discharge of Arkansas River be- 
low 30-35 

flood damage in and near, plate 

showing 8, 24, 25 

high-water marks in 24—25 

levees at, capacity and break- 
ing of 24, 25, 29 

loss of life and property in 6-8 

Rae, Mrs. Esther D., work of 6 

Railroad tracks, overturned, plate 

showing 24 

Railroad yards, effect of flood in, 

plate showing 8 

Rainfall, intense, principal areas of- 15-16 
records of, for June 2-6, 1921_ 12-15 

Relief, measures for 7 

Reservoirs, effects of, on the flood-- 16-19 
Residents, local, statements of, con- 
cerning rainstorm 13-15 

Ridgway, Arthur O.. acknowledg- 
ment to <> 

Rock Creek, rainstorm on 14, 15 

Rocky Mountain News, cited 38 

Rosencrantz, Fred, description of 

rainstorm by 14 

Rush Creek, rainstorm on 14, 15 

St. Charles River, course and de- 
scent of 33 

flood flow on 31,34 



Page. 

Savage, J. L., acknowledgment to — 6 
Schaeffer dam, view looking toward 

site of, plate showing- IS 
Schaeffer reservoir, construction and 

failure of 16-18 

Sherier, J. M., acknowledgment to_ 6 
Silt deposited in front of Union De- 
pot, Pueblo, Colo., 

plate showing 24 

Skaguay reservoir, construction of — IS 
with dam and spillway, plate 

showing 19 

Sources of the flood 5. 8 

Spiegel, J B., work of 6 

Streams, computed discharge of 19-22 

Teller reservoir, construction of 18-19 

Topography of Arkansas drainage 

basin 9-11 

Turkey Creek, flood flow above and 

below___L 23 

Union Depot, Pueblo, Colo., meas- 
urements of w ater 

level at 27-28 

on June 4, 1921, plate showing 25 

silt deposited in front of. plate 

showing 24 

Wall of water, production of 11 

Wells, Sim, description of rainstorm 

by 15 

White, C. E., account of failure of 

Schaeffer reservoir by_ 17 

Wing, J. F., description of rain- 
storm by 14 

Wyoming, maximum discharge per 
square mile on Crow 
Creek in 41 



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